Educational game device



Nov. 7, 1939.

F. c. HAUMERSQN EDUCATIONAL GAME DEVICE Filed July 20, 1958 Patented Nov. 7, 1939,

UNHTED STATES PATENT oe 2,178,906 EDUCATIONAL GAME DEVICE Frederick O. Haumerson, Racine, Wis.

Application July 20, 1938, Serial No. 220,181

6 Claims.

These and other objects, as will hereinafterappear, are accomplished by this invention which is fully described in the following specification and shown in the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of the device as viewed on the dotted line I of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2'of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a partial section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary rear view of the disk showing the answers to questions printed in reverse;

Fig. 5 is a transverse view on the broken line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a developed view of the sheet which is later bent as will be described and inserted within the cover of the housing for retaining the disk in place; and

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of a metal bracket and switch for holding an electric lamp bulb and a small dry cell for lighting the same.

The embodiment illustrated comprises a housing or box, preferably made of cardboard, having a bottom in and a cover II, the latter fitting over the former in a well known manner.

Within the cover is secured a pin or stud l2 which extends inwardly and which is adapted to serve as a centering means for a display disk l3 which has a hole l4 adapted to fit over the pin. A sheet 55 of cardboard or the like is preferably cut diagonally as shown in Figs. 1 and 6 and is placed within the cover and spaced somewhat from the inside surface of the cover as shown in Fig. 2- to provide a means for frictionally holding the disk E3 in contact with the inner surface of the cover. The sheet l5 has at its ends up-turned ears l5 and [5 which are glued to the inner sides of the cover to secure the sheet in place.

A series of questions as in Fig. 1 are printed on one face of the disk l3, each question being located within a definite sector It on the disk. The edge l3 of the disk preferably passes through a slot in the side of the cover ll so that it can be manually rotated by the operator. The cover is also cut away at H Fig. 1, to provide a space which will be substantially the sizeof one of the sectors l6 and which is so located that as the disk is rotated, each of the. sectors 16 on the disk can be brought into registration with the opening ll so that the operator can then read the question or other matter which is printed within the space on the disk.

The answers to the questions, riddles or the like are printed in reverse type on the reverse side of the disk l3 as shown in Fig. 4. Each of these occupies a space I! and the spacing of the answers bears a definite relation to the sectors of the question so that as each question appears in the opening Il the answer can be read through an opening li in the cover as will now be described.

The sheet I5 is provided with an lip-struck tongue is which provides an opening 19 which registers with the opening H in the cover as shown in Figs. 2 and 5. The sheet l5 also has a laterally extending flap 2!) which is adapted to be bent up along the dotted line 2! so as to stand at right angles to the body of the sheet l5 and the flap Zll has side flaps 22, 23 which in turn are adapted to be bent at right angles to the flap 20. The flaps 22 and 23 have end flaps 24 and 25 which are also adapted to be bent at right angles so as to engage the upstanding ear l8 to form a small compartment 26 as is shown in Figs. 2 and 5. This compartment is covered by means of a sheet of tin 21 which has downwardly extending ears28 which fit over and are secured to the compartment. The inner surface of this tin is highly polishedto serve as a mirror. The flap 22 is cut away at 22 to provide a means for illuminating the portion of the disk registering with the opening l9. This illumination is accomplished by means of a small electric light bulb 29' which has a threaded base which is screwed into a metal support 30, the latter being secured to the sheet I5. -The support 3|] has anupstanding portion 35 which carries a metal electrode 32, the latter being insulated from the portion 3! by means of a suitable electric insulator 33. The electrode 32 is provided with a small hump 32" which is adapted to engage the center terminal 34 of an electric dry cell 35, the metal bottom of the dry cell making contact with the center electrode of the electric lamp bulb 29. The metal support 3i! is provided with an upstruck tongue 36, the end of which lies in front of a hole 31 in the housing cover. The tongue 36 is normally out of contact with the metal electrode 32, but upon being depressed by the finger of an operator, will make electric contact therewith thereby causing current from the dry cell to pass through the electric lamp causing it to light and to illuminate the answer on the space I! which is then in front of the opening li A number of disks I3 covering various subjects such as history, biology, riddles, true or false statements, and the like may be prepared for use with this device, each disk carrying preferably on the reverse side the answers to each of the several questions. To use one of these, the operator inserts the disk over the pin l2 and under the sheet l5 and forces the sheet in until the opening l4 registers with the pin. He then places the cover on the bottom and manually rotates the disk until the desired question appears in the opening Il He then presses the tongue 36 causing the lamp 29 to illuminate the reverse side of the disk so that the answer can then be read in the opening li Competitive games can be operated in a group using the questions as read, one at a time, from the disk while the answers are. hidden until disclosed bypressing thetongue 36.-As rapidly as one disk isthus exhausted, another can be substituted for it. 1

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the class described, a. housing having a plurality of openings, a disk rotatably mounted therein for rotation about a center and having a series of questions printed thereon and adapted to register one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapted to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, the answers being printed on the reverse side of the disk from the questions, and a mirror for reflecting the answer through the opening,

2. In apparatus of the class described, a housing having a plurality of openings, a disk rotatably mounted therein for rotation about a center and having a series of questions-printed thereon and adapted to register one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapted to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, the answers being printed on the reverse side of the disk from the questions, an electric light for illuminating the answer operable by an operator, and a mirror for reflecting it through the opening. 1

3. In apparatus of the class described, a hous ing having a plurality of openings, a disk rotatably mounted thereinfor rotation about a center andhaving a series of questions printed thereon and adapted to register one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapated to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, the disk being flexible and. having a central hole, a pin carried by the housing and adapted to enter the hole for centering the disk for rotation, andmeans for yieldably holding the disk on the pin, the flexibility of the disk permitting it to be bent to pass over the pin on insertion and removal.

4. In apparatus of the class described, a houshaving a plurality of openings, a flexibledisk having a central hole and rotatably mounted in the housing for rotation about a pin and having a series of questions thereon and adapted to register one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapted. to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, a stud carried by the housing and adapted to enter the hole for centering the disk for rotation, and a sheet secured closely adjacent a flat portion of the housing and lying at one side of the pin so that the disk can be flexibly inserted between the housing and sheet to yieldably hold the disk on the pin and to provide friction for the disk.

5. In apparatus of the class described, a housing having a plurality of openings, a flexible disk having a central hole and rotatably mountedin the housing for rotation about a pin and having a series of questions thereon and adapted to register one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapted to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, a stud carried by the housing and adapted to enter the hole for centering the disk for rotation, a sheet secured closely adjacent a flat portion of the housing and lying at one side of the pin so that the disk can be flexibly inserted between the housing and sheet to yieldably hold the disk on the pin and to provide friction for the disk, the answers being located on the reverse side of the disk from the questions, and a mirror for refleeting the answer through the opening.

6. In apparatus of the class described, a housing having a plurality of openings, a flexible disk having a central hole and rotatably mounted in the housing for rotation about a pin and having a series of questions thereon and adapted to register-one at a time with one of the openings and having a series of answers each adapted to register with the other opening so that question and answer appear simultaneously, a stud carried by the housing and adapted to enter the hole for centering the disk for rotation, a sheet secured closely adjacent a flat portion of the housing and. lying at one side of the pin so that the disk can be flexibly inserted between the housing and sheet to yieldably hold the disk on the pin and to provide friction for the disk, the answers being located on the reverse side of the disk from the questions, electric means under control of an operator for illuminating the answer, and a mirror for reflecting the answer through the opening.

FREDERICK C. HAU'MERSON. 

